Tag Archives: Vape News

Team DIRECTVAPOR is fighting for your right to vape, and this team of sponsored MMA athletes is proving to be clearly unstoppable. With a nice round of victories, we want to send a huge shoutout to Freddy Assuncao, Andrew Whitney, and Sabah Homasi for their well-deserved and respected wins.

Team DIRECTVAPOR MMA has really been loading up on wins as of late, and we are so proud of all of our sponsored MMA athletes! This past Friday, during Titan FC 40, our three sponsored fighters made a killing, with all three coming out of the cage as winners at the event which went down at the BANKUNITED Center in Coral Gables, Fl. We are especially proud of the ferociously talented Freddy Assuncao, who not only defeated his opponent, Gesias Cavalcante during their match, with a technical submission via a guillotine choke, but also took home the lightweight title as a result. Go Freddy!

Other notable moments of the evening came when DIRECTVAPOR MMA-sponsored Andrew Whitney put down an upset victory against Anderson Dos Santos to come out on top, and securing himself a spot during the finals set for next month. Laying down weighty punches, in the second round at the 3:28 point, the ref put an end to the match, signaling a victory for Whitney. Aiming for the Bantamweight/ 135 lb championship, Whitney proved he has the courage, determination, and skill to fight his way to the top of this sport.

We are also very impressed by the fighting skills displayed by Sabah Homasi, DIRECTVAPOR’s third sponsored fighter of the event who dueled his way to victory. Defeating Jorge Patino with a killer TKO by punches in the second round, it took the “The Punisher” a mere 1:18 into this round to claim himself another win for his MMA resume.

So, congrats to all who’ve fought for the vape fam. We are full of gratitude and awe for these guys who go out there with absolute determination, and manage to come out on top after fighting equally skilled opponents. Go TEAM DIRECTVAPOR!

The tobacco deeming regulations were announced this week by the federal government, after years of speculation as to how they would impact the electronic cigarettes industry. As the industry has long been unregulated, it was a continuous discussion that everyone knew wasn’t about if; it was about when. Well, that when is now, and if Congress doesn’t act to overturn these rules, there is the potential for the industry to be quite negatively as a result.

The most confounding aspect of these regulations is that the FDA is categorizing an entire industry’s worth of products that contain no tobacco, as tobacco products. This is done simply to adhere to the February 2007 “grandfather date” and does not account for the thousands of products that simply did not exist at that time. For companies that manufacture vapor products, being able to keep their products on the market will require lengthy paperwork for every product sold, with application costs that can reach as high as $1 million per application. Not many companies, outside of the massive few, and those owned by cigarette companies will be able to front this. And simply, this type of regulation, which targets a growing market is blatantly wrong.

These initial regulations are still being examined, and some rules are less concrete than others, at the moment. Some of the regulations that will go into effect 90 days from now include:

No free samples of vapor products can be distributed

No sales via vending machines

Age verification will be required for purchase, as no sales will be permitted to those under 18, whether online or in retail locations

However, other areas of the nearly 500 page text detailing the deeming regulations are less set in stone, and subject to Congress overturning them. It certainly goes without say, the entire vapor products industry as well as all the researchers involved in examining the benefits of e-cigarettes have been up in arms. There is an overwhelming amount of support for these products, and many feel the positives they possess far outweigh the few negatives.

Currently there is a lot going on as the vape Industry prepares to fight for our rights of equality and by no means is this the end. We have long been ready for these regulations, and we are urging our customers to sign this petition to make it clear to the White House, and to Congress how beneficial vapor products are, and how destructive this type of legislation can be.

To all of our customers, we are here to support you throughout it all, and we look forward to continuing to serve you with the finest in vapor for years to come.

For many months now, the vapor products industry has been anticipating the announcement of the revised FDA Tobacco Deeming Regulations. This has been a continuously looming threat to the industry, and if it were to stand in accordance with how these regulations were initially drawn up, the entire industry would be facing major setbacks. Thankfully, this week the House Appropriations Committee passed an amendment to the agriculture bill that was designed to protect the majority of electronic cigarette businesses. While the amendment still has to get passed by the House, the action taken thus far is a major step in the right direction.

The big deal over the Tobacco Deeming Regulations has been that if the original date was to remain the same, all electronic cigarette products that have entered the market since 2007 would be forced to go through a rigorous and costly application process. Known as the Premarket Tobacco Application, all products that have emerged since 2007 would have to apply, and the cost would have been millions of dollars per product. Definitely not a financial figure most small businesses could front, this uphill battle would obviously force most of them into termination. The industry as a whole is highly relieved as a result, because it is evident of positive action in the right direction being taken.

The amendment was proposed by GOP Rep. Tom Cole and Democrat Rep. Sanford Bishop, passing with 31 – 19 votes. Among the amendment’s greatest opposers was Democratic National Committee Chair, Debbie Wasserman Schultz, who has voiced her opposition to electronic cigarettes openly.

However, despite the fact that the bill will have still have to get passed to officially become a law, the impending regulations are looking quite positive. This is exactly the kind of action the vapor industry has been hoping for, and we are entirely relieved that politicians are standing on the side of reason, and protecting what has evolved into a major asset for those looking for alternatives to tobacco.

The vapor products industry is a multi-billion dollar industry now, and it has been majorly influential in offering smokers a variety of options for handling their smoking with lifestyle choices. We are exceedingly pleased that we are headed towards regulations that make sense for all involved.

VaporFi really outdid themselves with a hilarious April Fools’ prank this year! Like many companies, the brand hit social media and major news outlets on April 1, 2016 boasting about a revolutionary new invention that would turn vapor invisible, making public usage virtually transparent! Hey, IKEA was advertising a reclining chair that miraculously changes colors by mood, and Google got into all kinds of sticky trouble by mixing business and pleasure with Minions and emails; we certainly weren’t the only ones creating a little raucous foolery!

VaporFi went totally all Harry Potter-esque with the technology of vaping invisibility. Feasible, intriguing, and useful, right? The promise of the VaporFi VOX Invisi 500 TC, with accompanying Invisi E-Liquid and Vapor Glasses, which were “designed” to create a device that produced an invisible vapor that enabled vapers to literally use it anywhere, with no trace of vapor whatsoever. However, what would have been an excellent tool to evade the harsh confines of tight regulations, was unfortunately, too good to be true!

While many vapers actually bought into the cheeky joke, and some were actually sad that it won’t be an actual product hitting the ever-so-innovative vape market, VaporFi had a ton of fun creating this prank campaign. It reached a variety of mainstream internet news outlets, and was featured in Business Wire. To quote our CEO, Nick Molina, “This groundbreaking technology is a game changer that Government regulators can’t touch. The VOX® Invisi 500 TC will allow anyone, anywhere, anytime to vape in public places. We’re the only company in the world with this technology and the first to bring invisible vaping to the market.” Ah, if only all April Fools’ jokes were this much fun!

If you didn’t catch it, head over to the VaporFi page, or check it out here. Hope your April Fools’ Day was filled with humor, pranks, and some great practical jokes!

Several weeks ago, a public health bill in Wales was erected in an effort to ban the usage of electronic cigarettes and similar devices in public. Both Liberal Democrats and Conservative members of the Welsh Assembly opposed the ban, however the Labor Party was able to extract a considerable amount of support from the Plaid Cymru members to get it passed. As should be done with all shady backdoor dealings that do not benefit the public, who will ultimately feel the brunt of such bans, this bill didn’t stand a chance. While it existed momentarily, due to the hard work and tireless diligence of vapers and vapers’ advocates, the bill was shot down on account of pressure applied in regards to a lack of evidence.

As with many situations occurring globally, in which vaping has become politicized, and politicians have gotten involved for reasons beyond the greater good of the people, this Welsh vaping ban is a prime example of manipulation. This particular bill was the work of UK Health Minister Mark Drakeford, who blatantly ignored the vast amount of research presented, favoring his own prejudiced-based opinion to pass it. As Drakeford has a longstanding history of opposition to vapor devices, claiming from his own opinion that vapor methods are the “least effective” method to be used for quitting smoking. His actions angered not only vapers in the UK, with advocates for vaping becoming vehemently outraged, numerous public health agencies reacted with similar disapproval. Despite Drakeford’s inherent sense of personal self-importance, the scientific and public health communities were clearly not accepting of it. This ban was opposed by Cancer Research UK, Action on Smoking and Health (ASH), and the Royal college of Physicians Wales, among many others.

However, victory on behalf of justice prevailed. it did not even take a full 2 weeks before counter action was implemented. Those who opposed the ban fought against it by using evidence-based research. They made a clear case to the Welsh Assembly, who then understood that they were lied to, as scientific information was knowingly withheld from them.

The Federal Department of Transportation, also known as FDOT, announced this week that electronic cigarettes are officially classified as smoking devices in regards to air travel, and therefore, they are now prohibited for use during flights.

From a statement from the Transportation Secretary, Anthony Foxx on the matter: “This final rule is important because it protects airline passengers from unwanted exposure to aerosol fumes that occur when electronic cigarettes are used onboard airplanes.The Department took a practical approach to eliminate any confusion between tobacco cigarettes and e-cigarettes by applying the same restrictions to both.”

Yes, it is true that electronic cigarettes have never been allowed, however, to further clarify the matter, FDOT has made it official with this final issuing of regulations that all electronic cigarettes, advanced vaporizers, electronic cigars, electronic pipes, any devices that are designed to resemble everyday objects including pens, and simply any device that is remotely similar and has the ability to vaporize nicotine liquid into delicious clouds of vapor is federally banned on commercial flights from, into, and throughout the US. The rule goes fully into effect April 3, 2016.

Additionally, while electronic cigarettes will be allowed to be carried with you on flights, FDOT has also made it a requirement of anyone carrying an electronic cigarette device that such items may not be stored in checked luggage; carry on only. Furthermore, electronic nicotine delivery systems may not be charged in any such manny on board the aircraft, in flight or otherwise.

If you vape, or are even just aware of the electronic smoking movement, and have attempted to, or looked into the possibility of vaping on an airplane, you will already know that it’s been prohibited. All the while however, federal mandates regarding the official rules have not been made clear, as the majority of the rules previously in existence were not inclusive of vapor devices, considering their relative newness. Until now.

“Vaping is not the same as smoking.” Vapers have repeated it for years, and finally the law is agreeing.

This week, a New York court ruled that under state law, vapers cannot be charged in violation of the state’s anti-smoking laws because as reality proves, vaping is not smoking.

Shawn Thomas was vaping on a subway platform, and when he was arrested, he was charged under state law, which does not designate using electronic cigarettes in public as illegal. Though in New York City the use of electronic cigarettes is banned in public places under the Smoke Free Air Act, it is not a state law, and this is exactly where Thomas was able to defend his actions and fight the charges he was assigned. In his favor, the judge ruled that smoking laws cannot be applied to vaping.

Vapers have always known this, and anyone else with common sense could have figured it out easily. Smoking involves tobacco, and cigarettes, and fire to light them, creating combustion, resulting in the burning of the plant matter, creating smoke. That’s the basic gist of smoking. Vaping, however, is an entirely different action, and it involves none of the above aspects of the process. Alternative cigarettes use nicotine e-liquid, burns nothing, produces vapor, dissipates without odor, uses no fire, creates no combustion, and does not produce smoking of the device. Clearly, no smoke involved.

This latest action in New York is an evident sign of reform occurring, showing that acceptance, though small, is happening, and however minute it may be, the fact that lawmakers are recognizing the difference is major. As the threat of FDA regulations looms, with the fear that they will attempt to classify vaping as smoking permanently, it is a very promising sign that awareness is occurring. While cases such as Shawn Thomas’ are going to be handled on an individual basis, and New York City will not be altering their Smoke Free Air Act anytime soon, any positive, justified action is a good sign!

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